Apr 18 IKEA Kitchen Mini Haul

When we registered for wedding gifts way back when, I think we had the mindset of - find a wedding gift checklist online and register for anything and everything on that list. I totally wish I hadn't done that. We got so many great things from our family and friends, but we got quite a lot that we truly didn't need.

For instance, Coach and I barely spend any time in the kitchen...as little time as possible, in fact. What we should have done is registered for the bare minimum necessities. Instead, we asked for sets of bakeware and sets of cookware and sets of dishware. It's way too much for us...not to mention we've totally ruined most of our pans with forks and metal utensils (I blame the husband. It's my blog and I'll do what I want).

Like all home fixes, I went to IKEA to buy all we need for a functional, minimal kitchen. We're going to pack all this up and wait until we move (you know, someday) and then we'll have both a new kitchen AND new kitchen stuff! Here's what I filled my cart with:

IKEA 365+ POT AND SAUCEPANYou know when people basically run out of room on the stove because they have so many things cooking at once? Nope, not us. The most we ever have going at once is basically noodles and spaghetti sauce. Both of those can be taken care of by just these guys.

SENIOR FRYING PANI have been eyeing this pan for quite some time. Mainly just for vain reasons. I mean, look how pretty it is! Totally Instagram-worthy. If I ever cook another recipe, it needs to be photographed in this. It's a cast iron, though, so I'll have to get used to caring for it properly.

KLOCKREN COLLAPSIBLE COLANDERI'm totally in to collapsible things right now. If it takes up less space than it needs to, I'm all for it. This colander can fit into a drawer to store away, but pops right back up when you need it.

SENSUELL FRYING PANJust in case I totally can't take care of that beautiful cast iron frying pan, this will be my backup plan. You know, necessary for all those pre-frozen meals that could use some fast thawing.

GEMAK WHITE COLANDERI know I don't need two colanders. The collapsible one is perfect for all the things I'd use it for, but this one was so stinking cute, y'all. I bought this more as fruit storage for the kitchen countertop. It's small, but really cute and vintage-looking.

MÖNSTRAD BAKING MATI haven't replaced my baking sheets yet, but when I do I want to start using this silicone mat to protect them from looking like what my current one does (which is just overall terrible).

STABIL LIDI needed a cover for the frying pans I got. This one is really thin, fits them both and the handle folds down to fit into even smaller spaces.

VARDAGEN MEASURING SPOONSMy original measuring spoons are all over the place. They aren't hooked together, therefor they apparently "jump" from drawer-to-drawer and I may have lost a few. IKEA was out of the matching measuring cups, but I'll be back for those.

STÄM PIZZA CUTTERSpeaking of losing things, we have SOMEHOW lost three pizza cutters in this apartment. Did they pack up and travel to the land of lost socks? Will I find them when I move out? #QuestionsThatNeedAnswers This was a necessary replacement.

IKEA 365+ POT HOLDERI really like how these easily close over both the bottom and top of a pan or baking sheet. Plus, gray is the best color of all the colors...or lack of color?

It's kind of a big haul for me, but I know in the world of kitchens, it's pretty small. I'm replacing about 2 cabinets full of pointless excess items with these very specific, useful ones. I may even end up with a few empty cabinets. I'll call that a win!

I spent hours looking around that blue maze's basement, deciding which items would really have some value in our house. Mainly just because I'm so indecisive and was trying really hard not to buy too much. Maybe this little list will save someone else some time searching!